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Genesis (band)
Genesis are an English rock band formed in Godalming, Surrey in 1967, with Peter Gabriel, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford and Anthony Phillips as founding members. The band has had numerous line-ups throughout its history, of which eleven musicians became full time members. Its most recent formation comprised two founding members–keyboardist Tony Banks and bassist/guitarist Mike Rutherford–and drummer/singer Phil Collins, who joined in 1970. Genesis are one of the best selling music artists of all time with approximately 130 million records sold worldwide.1 They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010. Formed by five pupils at Charterhouse School, Genesis were initially regarded as a "pop experiment" as evident by their debut album, From Genesis to Revelation(1969).2 They evolved into a progressive rock band with Trespass (1970) and Nursery Cryme (1971), which showcased longer tracks, fantasy inspired lyrics, and complex song structures and instrumentation. Their success continued with Foxtrot (1972), which features the 23-minute track "Supper's Ready", and Selling England by the Pound (1973). Genesis concerts during this time became theatrical experiences with stage design, pyrotechnics, story telling, and singer Peter Gabriel wearing make-up and costumes. In 1975, after touring in support of their double concept album The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway (1974), Gabriel left the band. Collins would handle drums and lead vocals on their subsequent studio albums, of which three more were released in the 1970s: A Trick of the Tail (1976), Wind & Wuthering (1976), and ...And Then There Were Three... (1978). The single "Follow You Follow Me" from the latter was a major international success and represented a change in their musical direction, becoming more pop-oriented and commercially accessible. In 1980, Genesis scored their first UK number one album with Duke (1980). Their commercial success grew with further UK number one albums Abacab (1981) and''Genesis'' (1983), which coincided with Collins's increasing popularity as a solo artist. The band peaked with Invisible Touch (1986), their best-selling album, from which all five singles released entered the top five on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart, with "Invisible Touch" reaching the number one spot. In 1991, after a five-year break, Genesis continued their mainstream success with We Can't Dance (1991), which contained the worldwide hit single "I Can't Dance". In 1996, Collins left the band, which led to Ray Wilson taking his place on vocals. Wilson, Banks, and Rutherford released Calling All Stations (1997), which sold well in Europe but peaked at number 53 in the United States, their lowest charting album since 1974. Following a European tour in 1998, the band went on hiatus. In 2006, Banks, Rutherford, and Collins reunited for their 2007 Turn It On Again Tour, which included a free concert in Rome that was attended by 500,000 people. The future of the band remains uncertain; Collins stated that he was retiring from the music industry in 2011 but has since indicated he is considering a return,3 whilst Banks indicated that Genesis had come to an end during an interview in 2012.4 In 2014, Gabriel, Banks, Rutherford, Collins, and Hackett reunited for a BBC documentary,Genesis: Together and Apart.5 Contents hide * 1 History ** 1.1 1967–70: Formation, From Genesis to Revelation, and Trespass ** 1.2 1971–75: Nursery Cryme, Foxtrot, Selling England by the Pound, and The Lamb ** 1.3 1975–77: Collins on lead vocals, A Trick of the Tail, and Wind & Wuthering ** 1.4 1978–79: Three-man era and ...And Then There Were Three... ** 1.5 1980–84: Duke, Abacab, and Genesis ** 1.6 1985–96: Invisible Touch, We Can't Dance, and Collins's departure ** 1.7 1996–2005: Wilson replaces Collins, Hackett Revisits, Calling All Stations, reunions, and hiatus ** 1.8 2006–09: Reunion tour and discography remasters ** 1.9 2010–present: Hall of Fame induction, reunion speculations, Genesis Revisited II, and BBC documentary * 2 Inspiration and influences * 3 Legacy * 4 Album cover art * 5 Criticism * 6 Personnel * 7 Discography * 8 Band members' discographies * 9 See also * 10 Further reading * 11 References * 12 External links Historyedit 1967–70: Formation, From Genesis to Revelation, and Trespassedit Genesis in 1967 with Anthony Phillips, Mike Rutherford, Tony Banks,Peter Gabriel and Chris Stewart The founding members of Genesis, Peter Gabriel, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford and Anthony Phillips all met at Charterhouse School in Godalming, Surrey.6 Gabriel and Banks had arrived at the school in September 1963,7 Rutherford in September 1964 and Phillips in April 1965.8 All four found the environment of Charterhouse restrictive, as it favoured activities such as team sports, which they disliked.8 Banks had been taking piano lessons since he started prep school aged 7,9 while Rutherford had been playing guitar since he was 7 and Phillips had already played in a band, the Spiders, before arriving at the school.8 The group evolved from earlier school bands the Anon and the Garden Wall, and joined forces in Easter 1967, in order to record a demo tape.10 The first line-up consisted of Gabriel on vocals, Phillips on guitar, Banks on keyboards, Rutherford on bass and rhythm guitar and Chris Stewart (drums).11 Having recorded a demo containing "Don't Want You Back", "Try A Little Sadness", "She's Beautiful", "That's me", "Listen on Five" and an instrumental "Patricia", the group wanted to get the songs professionally published and recorded. Charterhouse alumnus Jonathan King had left in 1965 and achieved immediate success in the pop world with "Everyone's Gone to the Moon", so he seemed a natural choice as a publisher and producer.12 The group got a friend to give the tape to King, who was immediately enthusiastic, later saying "I thought it was fabulous".13 Under King's advice, the group recorded another demo, which led to a recording contract with him.13 The group recorded another session at Regent Sound Studio in Denmark Street, London, where they attempted a number of longer and more complex songs, but King was unhappy with these, and advised that the group should stick to straightforward pop.14 In response, Banks and Gabriel wrote "The Silent Sun", a pastiche of the Bee Gees, one of King's favourite bands. The song was chosen to be their first single and it was recorded at Regent in December 1967.15 The group suggested a number of names, including King's suggestion of Gabriel's Angels and Champagne Meadow from Phillips, before taking King's suggestion of Genesis, indicating the start of his production career. The single achieved airplay on BBC Radio One and Radio Caroline, but the record didn't sell. A further single, "A Winter's Tale" was recorded and released in 1968, but it also failed to chart. Shortly afterwards, Stewart left the group as he lacked the dedication and drive of the others, and had no input into songwriting. He was replaced by John Silver.16 Though the singles didn't sell, King felt that the group's songwriting and sound might be better suited to an album.16 The result, From Genesis to Revelation, was recorded over a ten day period in August 1968 and released in March 1969 on Decca Records.1718 King assembled the tracks as a concept album, which he produced, while Arther Greenslade added string arrangements. The band were unhappy with the presence of the strings, which they felt swamped the rest of the instruments.19 The album omitted the group's name as Decca noticed there was another group in the United States called Genesis, and simply listed the title on a black cover.20 The album sold a minimal 649 copies and Genesis split with both Decca and King,21 who continues to hold the rights to the album, reissuing it several times under a variety of names. The band have since given a negative view of the album and have been embarrassed by its re-releases.22 Following the recording of From Genesis to Revelation, the band went their separate ways. Gabriel and Phillips stayed at Charterhouse, while Banks started a maths, physics and philosophy degree at Sussex University and Rutherford moved to Farnborough College of Technology.23 They regrouped in the summer of 1969 to discuss what future the group held, given they had offers of further education that would have led to the group splitting up. Phillips and Rutherford decided they would turn professional and make music a full-time career, as they were starting to write music that was more complex and advanced than the earlier work with King.24Silver decided to leave the group to study in the United States, and was replaced by John Mayhew, who had been recruited by an advertisement in Melody Maker.2518 The group relocated to Dorking, Surrey and lived in a cottage owned by the parents of Richard MacPhail, a friend from Charterhouse. They played their first gig in September 1969, and continued to write and rehearse in the cottage until April 1970, by which time they had enough material for an album.26 The band developed a strong working ethic, playing together for as much as 11 hours a day. Banks later said they were "trying to do something adventurous musically".27 Gabriel managed to book the band for a gig at Brunel University, which won them several fans and allowed them to secure a six-week residency at Ronnie Scotts during March and April. The group were spotted by Charisma Records' producer John Anthony, who enjoyed the performance and persuaded his boss, label owner Tony Stratton-Smithto sign the group.28 29 They would remain at Charisma until the label's demise in 1986. Recording for the band's second album, Trespass, began in June 1970 at Trident Studios with Anthony producing.28 The album was produced from many of the songs the band had written in Dorking, and included folk influences and progressive rock elements, such as complex arrangements and time signature changes used in the closing song "The Knife".30 The album's cover was designed by Paul Whitehead, who would illustrate the covers for the band's next two albums. Shortly after recording Trespass, Phillips decided to leave the group. He had felt that the increased workload of gigs had stopped the band from being creative as it had been previously, and that a number of acoustic pieces he wrote were dropped from the live set and not considered for recording.31 He had contracted bronchial pneumonia and became isolated from the rest of the band, feeling that it had too many songwriters in it.32 Phillips had been an important member of the band, being the most encouraging and instrumental in encouraging them to turn professional, and his departure has since been described by the rest of the band as the greatest threat to the band and the biggest to overcome. Driving home from Phillips' last gig, the rest of the band discussed their future. Gabriel and Rutherford decided they would continue, while Banks agreed on the condition that they also find a new drummer that was of equal stature to the rest of the group. Mayhew was therefore fired, though Phillips later thought Mayhew's working-class background clashed with the rest of the band and damaged his confidence at drumming.33 Trespass was released in October 1970, and though commercially unsuccessful in the UK, topped the charts in Belgium. Initial sales of the album, though far greater than those of From Genesis to Revelation were minimal at around 6,000 copies worldwide. It peaked at #98 in the UK when reissued by Virgin Records in 1985.[citation needed] In August 1970, Stratton-Smith advertised in Melody Maker for a replacement guitarist and drummer. Gabriel, Banks and Rutherford auditioned 15 drummers, but were particularly keen on Phil Collins, partly due to his playing skill, but also because of his sense of humour.34 Collins had stage school experience, and had played in a number of bands, including Flaming Youth. Though he was friends with Stratton-Smith, he was still required to audition for Genesis.35 The group did not find a suitable replacement for Phillips, so Banks learned how to play two keyboard parts simultaneously to cover for the lack of lead guitar and they resumed gigging as a four-piece. Mick Barnardbriefly joined the band in November 1970 as the new guitarist, but they quickly discovered his playing expertise and experience wasn't up to the same standard as the rest of the group.36 In December, Gabriel spotted an advert in Melody Maker from Steve Hackett, who was looking for a band of "receptive musicians, determined to drive beyond existing stagnant music forms".37 Gabriel phoned former Quiet World guitarist Steve Hackett, asking him to listen to Trespass and attend a gig at the Lyceum.37 Hackett realised his guitar playing style would improve the band's sound and formed an immediate rapport with them, joining the band in January 1971.38 1971–75: Nursery Cryme, Foxtrot, Selling England by the Pound, and The Lambedit Following the addition of Hackett, the band went on the "Six Bob Tour" with two other Charisma acts, Lindisfarne and Van der Graaf Generator. Those groups had had commercial success, but Genesis had a positive reception, with Melody Maker 's Michael Watts saying they "emerged with the greatest honours and audience acclaim".39 With no commercial success and little interest in hit singles, Genesis began to commit themselves to regular touring to build a live following, feeling it was the only way they would become successful.40 The band started recording their third album Nursery Cryme in August 1971.41 The album includes "The Musical Box", which had been worked on with Phillips and Mayhew, but Hackett created new lead guitar parts.42 "For Absent Friends", written by Collins and Hackett and produced by John Anthony, is the first track to feature Collins on lead vocals. On "Seven Stones" and "The Fountain of Salmacis", a song based onHermaphroditus, Banks used the same Mellotron used on In the Court of the Crimson King by King Crimson. Nursery Cryme was released on 12 November 1971 and would belatedly peak at number 39 in the UK in the spring of 1974.41 It continued the band's success in Italy after it reached number 4. Genesis resumed touring to support Nursery Cryme in November 1971, including their first dates outside of the UK, including dates in Belgium and Italy.41 Their performance at the year's Reading Festival was well received by the music press.43 Peter Gabriel in costume in 1974 singing "Watcher of the Skies" from Foxtrot In August 1972, the band recorded Foxtrot at Island Studios. During the album's production two producers were used before John Burns took over which began a successful three-album collaboration.44 The album features what music critic and author Chris Welch described as "one of the group's most accomplished works",45 the 23-minute track "Supper's Ready". It remains the band's longest track recorded to date. Songs such as the Arthur C. Clarke-inspired "Watcher of the Skies" solidified their reputation as songwriters and performers. Gabriel's flamboyant and theatrical stage presence, which involved numerous and elaborate costumes and surreal spoken song introductions, made the band a popular live act.46 Foxtrot was released in October 1972. It reached number one in Italy and number 12 in the UK and still failed to chart in the United States. The Foxtrot tour began in September 1972 and lasted for one year, which included the band's first North American dates.41 The tour spawned the band's first live album, Genesis Live,44 which became the band's highest UK chart position since its formation at number 9.41 It is their first album to break into the U.S. charts with a peak of 105.41 During the summer of 1973, Collins, Rutherford and Phillips started work on Phillips' The Geese and the Ghost album with songs, "Only Your Love", Silver Song" and "Master of Time". With Collins on lead vocals, Rutherford on bass and rhythm guitars. The album would not be released until 1977. In August 1973, Genesis returned to the studio to record Selling England by the Pound. The album's title refers to a UK Labour Party slogan in an effort to counter the impression that Genesis were becoming too U.S.-oriented.47 On the opening track, "Dancing with the Moonlit Knight", Hackett became an early user of tapping and sweep-picking, two guitar techniques later popularised by Eddie Van Halen and Yngwie Malmsteen, respectively.4849 Selling England By the Pound was released in October 1973 to a positive critical reception.50 The album reached number 3 in the UK and number 70 in the United States.41 The track "I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)" was released as a single in the UK that peaked at number 17 and Firth of Fifth was a staple of album oriented FM stations. By 1973, the band signed Tony Smith as their new manager who published all subsequent Genesis songs through his company, Hit & Run Music Publishing. In 1974, Genesis retreated to Headley Grange in Headley, East Hampshire to write and rehearse material for their double concept album, The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. In contrast to the longer tracks featured on earlier albums, the album is a collection of shorter tracks connected by a number of segues. It tells the story of Rael, a Puerto Rican youth living in New York City, and his spiritual quest to establish his freedom and identity.51 Rael encounters several bizarre characters including the "Slippermen" and a Lamia. Influences for the story include Greek mythology, works by Keats, and Alejandro Jodorowsky's philosophical film El Topo. Recording began in August 1974 at Island Mobile Studios in Wales and lasted for three months. Gabriel was absent for a considerable amount of sessions due to his wife's problems with her first pregnancy. He proceeded to write the album's story and lyrics himself, which caused some friction with the rest of the group. English musician Brian Eno contributed synthesizers and sound effects to the album that were later known as "Enossifications";52 Gabriel was pleased with Eno's contributions but Banks was not enthusiastic.53 Eno's work was done in exchange for Collins' percussion work on "Mother Whale Eyeless" from Eno's album Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy).54 The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway was released on 18 November 1974. It reached number 10 in the UK and number 41 in the US. The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway tour ran from October 197455 to May 1975, covering Europe and North America across 102 dates.41 The show included The Lamb performed in its entirety with an encore, a choice that the band later regretted as it compelled them to play songs that failed to come off well on stage.56 The tour's stage design included elaborate costumes and theatrical performances from Gabriel, slide projections, and an elaborate laser lighting display developed by Dutch technician Theo Botschuijver. Genesis were voted as "Top Stage Band" by readers of NME.41 During The Lamb tour, Gabriel announced his intention to leave Genesis at its conclusion to the group.57 He cited estrangement from his bandmates and the strains of the difficult birth of his first child. He wrote a statement to the British music press that was published in August 1975, explaining: "...the vehicle we had built as a co-op to serve our songwriting became our master and had cooped us up inside the success we had wanted. It affected the attitudes and the spirit of the whole band. The music had not dried up and I still respect the other musicians, but our roles had set in hard."58 Banks later stated, "Although I did spend a long time trying to persuade Pete not to leave, in a way it was absolutely the right thing to happen. He wanted to move into slightly different areas, and Pete was also getting too big for the group. He was being portrayed as if he was 'the man' and it really wasn't like that. It was a very difficult thing to accommodate. So it was actually a bit of a relief."59 1975–77: Collins on lead vocals, A Trick of the Tail, and Wind & Wutheringedit The group auditioned lead singers to find a replacement for Gabriel. Phil Collins, who had provided backing vocals, coached prospective replacements.60 When the band was about to record the vocals for the album the members came to the realisation that Gabriel's possible replacement just wasn't the voice they needed. Collins asked the other members if he could give it a try. As his voice fit the already-completed music, Collins quickly completed the vocals and the band was left with the decision about what to do for live shows. Even though he had successfully completed the singing for the album, he still was unsure about leaving his drum kit and coming out front to sing for concert performances61 for 1976's A Trick of the Tail. New producer David Hentschel, who engineered Nursery Cryme, gave the album a clearer-sounding production. One music historian later opined that Collins sounded "more like Gabriel than Gabriel did".62 Collins joined jazz fusion group Brand X on their debut album Unorthodox Behaviour, which would have an influence on Genesis songs "Los Endos" and "Wot Gorilla?".63 Despite the success of the album, the group remained concerned with their live shows, which now lacked Gabriel's elaborate costume changes and dramatic behaviour. Since Collins required the assistance of a second drummer while he sang, Bill Bruford, drummer for Yes and King Crimson was hired64 for the 1976 tour. Their first live performance without Gabriel, and the first with Collins as lead singer, was on 26 March 1976, in London, Ontario, Canada.65 Concert footage of this tour is shown in their 1977 concert film, Genesis: In Concert. Later that year, Genesis recorded Wind & Wuthering, the first of two albums recorded at the Relight Studios in Hilvarenbeek in the Netherlands.66 Released in December 1976,67 the album took its title from Emily Brontë's novel Wuthering Heights, whose last lines—"listened to the soft wind breathing through the grass; and wondered how any one could ever imagine unquiet slumbers for the sleepers in that quiet earth"—inspired the titles of the seventh and eighth tracks.63 For the 1977 Genesis tour, the jazz fusion-trained Chester Thompson—a veteran of Weather Report and Frank Zappa—took on live drumming duties. In a lengthy interview with Robin Tolleson, Collins described the selection of Thompson to partake in the role as drummer for the band: Collins's approach to Genesis shows differed from the theatrical performances of Gabriel, and his interpretations of older songs were lighter and more subtle. At the 1982 Milton Keynes reunion show, Gabriel admitted that Collins sang the songs "better", though never "quite like" him.69 Hackett had become increasingly disenchanted with the band by the time of Wind & Wuthering's release,57 and he felt confined. He was the first member of the band to record a solo album, 1975's Voyage of the Acolyte, (with the assistance of Collins and Rutherford) and greatly enjoyed the feelings of control over the recording process that working within a group could not provide. Hackett's album featured Collins on drums, who did the lead vocal on "Star of Sirius", Rutherford on bass, and a Hackett/Rutherford track "Shadow of the Hierophant"; a track that Genesis rehearsed in 1972. Banks' reaction to Hackett's album was not very enthusiastic. Hackett had asked that a quarter of Wind & Wuthering be allocated to his songs, which Collins described as "a dumb way to work in a band context".70 While Hackett was given songwriting credits on the instrumental track "Unquiet Slumbers for the Sleepers..."/"...In That Quiet Earth", "Eleventh Earl of Mar", and "Inside and Out"(which was omitted from the album) the Hackett and Collins co-written "Blood on the Rooftops" was never performed live, and his song "Please Don't Touch" (the title track to his 1978 solo album Please Don't Touch, featuring Thompson) was rejected by the rest of the band after rehearsing the track, whom then opted for the shorter and catchier instrumental "Wot Gorilla?". Hackett left the band in the summer of 1977, phoning in his resignation at the studio while the band were mixing the live album Seconds Out; recorded during the 1976 and 1977 tours. Hackett's last studio performance with Genesis would be on the Spot the Pigeon EP. 1978–79: Three-man era and ...And Then There Were Three...edit Following the departure of Hackett, Rutherford took on guitar duties in the studio and the band were getting closer to a balance of what each member provided from a creative standpoint. The group decided to continue as a trio, a fact they acknowledged in the title of the 1978 album ...And Then There Were Three.... The album was a further move away from lengthy progressive epics (as explained in the lyrics on the song "Down and Out"), and yielded their first American radio hit, "Follow You Follow Me", whose popularity led to …And Then There Were Three… being the band's first U.S. Platinum-certified album.71 For live performances that year, Rutherford alternated again between guitar and bass with American Daryl Stuermer, formerly guitarist with French born violinist Jean-Luc Ponty's instrumental jazz fusion/jazz rock band. Generally, Rutherford played the guitar pieces he composed during the most recent album, but stuck with bass for all of the material recorded prior to 1978. Their 1978 world tour took them across North America, over to Europe, back to North America, and, eventually, to their first performances in Japan at the end of 1978. As the headline act, Genesis performed their first concert at Knebworth in Hertfordshire on 24 June 1978.7273 On 29 July 1978, the band made their second appearance at Madison Square Garden, New York. Gabriel and Genesis did an encore of "I Know What I Like" at the end of the show.74 Genesis would play this venue again on all subsequent U.S. tours except for the 1992 We Can't Dance tour (where they played Giants Stadium).75 As the band had been recording and touring constantly since the winter of 1977–78, it was decided by Banks, Collins, and Rutherford to take the majority of 1979 off. Collins had previously informed his bandmates that he needed to attempt to save his marriage by following his wife to her new home in Vancouver. If they planned to go back into the studio, they were going to have to count him out. Banks and Rutherford responded by proposing that the band go into hiatus while he sorted out his family issues and record solo material in the meantime. 1980–84: Duke, Abacab, and Genesisedit At the end of the ...And Then There Were Three... tour in December 1978, Collins proceeded to try and save his now failing marriage. He explained, "I went off to Vancouver for two months to try and sort things out ... I was never going to leave the band. It was just that if I was going to be living in Vancouver then we'd have had to organise ourselves differently."76 After the marriage collapsed, Collins returned to the UK in April 1979 while Banks and Rutherford had begun work on their respective solo albums, A Curious Feeling and Smallcreep's Day.76 During the making of Smallcreep's Day Rutherford finished writing a side B single track "Compression" that Genesis had originally rehearsed in 197377 Banks and Rutherford as contributed track, "From the Undertow" to The Shout soundtrack. With time to spare before Genesis reconvened to work on a new album, Collins returned to Brand X,76 worked with Peter Gabriel and Robert Fripp, and started writing his first solo album, Face Value. The release of Phillips' Sides, Hackett's Spectral Mornings, Defector and Gabriel's third album all signified that all current and former members of Genesis were doing solo acts, in other bands, and doing soundtracks. Genesis recorded their tenth studio album, Duke, in late 1979 at Polar Studios in Stockholm, Sweden. As a result of this writing arrangement the band worked as a solo act conglomerated, and no longer a homogenous band Genesis once was. 78 More of Collins' R&B based pop writing was permitted in the song writing where it was absent from previous Genesis albums. Rutherford said their time recording Duke was "getting back to the basic stage of ideas being worked on jointly". Banks reasoned much of the band's refreshed attitude was "down to not having worked together in a while ... Good ideas are coming out ... which hasn't happened for some time."76 Duke showcased the band moving further into commercial rock.57 "Duchess" is the first Genesis track that utilises a drum machine, specifically the Roland CR-78 which was imported from Japan. Upon its release in March 1980, Duke was the band's biggest commercial success to date. It topped the UK charts for two weeks and peaked at number 11 in the US,55 where it sold over one million copies. "Turn It On Again" was released as a single in the UK and went to number 8.55 In the US, "Misunderstanding" reached number 14. The Duke tour ran from March to June 1980, beginning with a 40-date tour of the UK where all 106,000 tickets sold out within hours of going on sale.79 The band's remodelled studio inChiddingfold, Surrey known as The Farm. Abacab was the first album recorded there. In 1981, Genesis started work on Abacab which was produced solely by themselves. It is their first album recorded in The Farm, a remodelled studio in Chiddingfold, Surrey that has since been the band's main recording studio. "No Reply at All" features the Phenix Horns, the horn section of American band Earth, Wind & Fire. The album uses drums with a gated reverb effect which combines strong reverb and a noise gate which rapidly cuts off when a particular volume threshold is reached, resulting in a clean but and punchy drum sound.80 Abacab was released in September 1981 to commercial success. It reached number one in the UK for two weeks and peaked at number 7 in the US, where it went on to sell over two million copies. The album spawned four singles; three reached the US top 40 and "Abacab" reached number 9 in the UK. The Abacab tour covered Europe and North America from September to December 1981. The tour marked the band's first use of the Vari-Lite, a computer controlled intelligent lighting system. In May 1982, three tracks recorded during the Abacab sessions were released as an EP titled 3X3 which peaked at number 10 in the UK. The lead single, "Paperlate", features the Phenix Horns. 3X3 was followed by the release of the double live album, Three Sides Live, in June 1982, formed of recordings from the Duke and Abacab tours. The North American edition contains three sides of live recordings with the fourth comprising the 3X3 tracks and two from the Duke sessions. The European version contains a fourth side of live performances. The album reached number 2 in the UK and number 10 in the US. A tour of North America and Europe followed ran from August to September 1982 and included an unadvertised show at the Marquee Club in Soho, London. The album coincided with the release of the Three Sides Live concert film, recorded during the Abacab''tour. On 2 October 1982, Genesis performed a one-off concert with Gabriel and Hackett at the Milton Keynes Bowl under the name Six of the Best. The concert was organised to raise money for Gabriel's World of Music, Arts and Dance project which was suffering from considerable debts.81 Hackett, who flew in from South America, arrived in time to perform the last two songs. Recording for the band's next album, ''Genesis, began in May 1983. The band decided on its title as each track was written as a group rather than individually. Its opening track, "Mama", concerns a man's obsession with a prostitute. Collins's laugh in the track developed from the "The Message" by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. "That's All" was the band's attempt to create a pop song with a melody in the style of The Beatles with Collins attempting a "Ringo Starr drum part". Genesis was released in October 1983 and continued the band's growing commercial success. The album topped the UK charts for one week and peaked at number 9 in the US, where it went on to sell over 4 million copies. Five tracks were released as singles; "Mama" reached number 4 in the UK, their highest charting UK single to date, and "That's All" reached number 6 in the US. The Mama Tour ran from November 1983 to February 1984, covering North America and five shows in Birmingham. The latter shows were filmed and released as Genesis Live – The Mama Tour. In 1985, Genesis was nominated for a Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and "Second Home by the Sea" was nominated for Best Rock Instrumental Performance. 1985–96: Invisible Touch, We Can't Dance, and Collins's departureedit Banks, Collins, and Rutherford planned to work on more solo material following the end of the Mama Tour. In 1984 Rutherford, Collins and Gabriel contributed solo work on Against All Odds, and in 1985, Rutherford recorded an album with his side project Mike + The Mechanics, Banks worked on his second solo soundtrack album Soundtracks. Collins released his third solo album, No Jacket Required, and Genesis reconvened at The Farm to write and record Invisible Touch. Invisible Touch was released in June 1986 and remains Genesis's most commercially successful album. It reached number one in the UK for two weeks and peaked at number 3 in the US, where it sold over 6 million copies. The album's five singles reached the top five in the US chart: "Throwing It All Away", "In Too Deep", "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight", "Land of Confusion" and "Invisible Touch". The title track reached number one in the US for three weeks, the only Genesis track to do so. In September 1986, Genesis performed "Throwing It All Away" at the 1986 MTV Video Music Awards in Los Angeles.82 Earlier that year, Collins viewed a spoof of himself on Spitting Image, a satirical British television show that used puppets to lampoon politicians and celebrities. He was impressed with the representation, and commissioned the show's creators, Peter Fluck and Roger Law, to work on the video for the "Land of Confusion" single. The video was formed as an ironic commentary on the Cold War, and played on the perception that the coalition's leaders were "trigger happy" with the nuclear "button". At the1987 MTV Video Music Awards it was nominated for the MTV Video of the Year, losing to Gabriel's "Sledgehammer".83 At the 1988 Grammy Awards it won the award for Best Concept Music Video.84 The Invisible Touch Tour ran from September 1986 to July 1987. It was the band's longest and highest-attended tour in its history. The tour concluded with four sold out shows at Wembley Stadium, the first time a band achieved this feat.85 The shows were recorded and released on video as The Invisible Touch Tour in 1988. The band's current logo was first used on the front cover of We Can't Dance After Banks released Bankstatement, Collins released But Seriously, and Rutherford released The Living Years Genesis reconvened for the 1991 album release We Can't Dance, Collins' last studio album with the group. The album features the hit singles "Jesus He Knows Me", "I Can't Dance", "No Son of Mine", "Hold on My Heart", "Tell Me Why" and "Never a Time" (a U.S. release only), as well as lengthy pieces such as "Driving the Last Spike" and "Fading Lights". The album, which was produced by Nick Daviswho had previously produced Marillion, includes "Since I Lost You", which Collins wrote in memory of Eric Clapton's son Conor. In 1993 it was nominated for the Brit Award for Best British Album.86 At the 1993 American Music Awards on 25 January, Genesis won the award for Favorite Pop/Rock Band, Duo, or Group.87 Collins left the band in March 1996. He reasoned that he "felt it time to change direction in my musical life. For me now, it will be music for movies, some jazz projects, and of course my solo career. I wish the guys in Genesis all the very best in their future. We remain the best of friends."88 1996–2005: Wilson replaces Collins, Hackett Revisits, Calling All Stations, reunions, and hiatusedit Ray Wilson Rutherford and Banks decided to continue as Genesis. However, they required more than one new member, because the band had lost not only Collins, but also live musicians such as guitarist Daryl Stuermer and drummer Chester Thompson. Stuermer was approached, but was working with Collins on his Dance into the Light album and touring with Collins at the time, as shown in Collins's Live and Loose in Paris DVD. Stuermer's last studio performance with Banks would be on Banks' Strictly Inc album, playing the guitar solo on the album's most notable 17 minute track "An Island In the Darkness". Thompson enquired regarding the vacant drum stool, but after being refused full-band membership, he ended his 19-year association with the band. However, Thompson did work with Hackett on his Genesis Revisited album as well as toured with Hackett for the album on The Tokyo Tapes. During the recording of Genesis Revisited, Hackett finished a 1973 Gabriel track "Deja Vu",89 while Rutherford released Beggar on a Beach of Gold. Eventually drumming duties were shared between Nir Zidkyahu, an Israeli session drummer, who had played with Hidden Persuaders, and Nick D'Virgilio, from the American progressive rock band Spock's Beard.90 The difference in their playing styles was marked; D'Virgilio played softer, more subtle rhythms in comparison to Zidkyahu's bombastic technique. Two singers made the final vocal auditions, ex-Stiltskin singer Ray Wilson and David Longdon.91 Wilson was appointed as the new lead singer of Genesis in June 1997. On the band's criteria in the search for a singer, Banks noted: "We needed someone who fits as many of the things you require as possible — being able to improvise with the kind of music we write and also someone capable of jumping in at the deep end and fronting a band." Wilson was immediately incorporated into the songwriting process, being given "half-a-dozen" songs to work on and ending up with three co-writing credits on the final album.92 1997's album Calling All Stations sold well in Europe, while the track "Congo" reached No. 29 in the UK. The album was not as successful in America, where it failed to reach the Billboard Top 50. During 1997 and 1998, Genesis toured across Europe; Banks, Rutherford, and Wilson were joined live by Zidkyahu and the guitarist Anthony Drennan, who previously had worked with Paul Bradyand The Corrs. A concert of this tour was featured in Genesis's Live in Poland DVD. However, a planned American tour was cancelled due to the album's poor sales performance. Following the truncation of the''Calling All Stations'' tour, Genesis dismissed Wilson and went on an extended hiatus, although the members remained in regular contact. In an April 2007 interview, Wilson expressed his disgust at how his dismissal was handled, saying "it was like death by silence."93 In 1998, Banks, Collins, Gabriel, Hackett, Phillips, Rutherford, and Silver gathered for a photo session and dinner to celebrate the release of a new box set, Genesis Archive 1967–75. In 1999, the 1971–75 line-up of Banks, Collins, Gabriel, Hackett and Rutherford released a new version of "The Carpet Crawlers" for the Turn It On Again: The Hits compilation. On 21 September 2000, Collins, Banks, and Rutherford along with Daryl Stuermer performed acoustic renditions of "I Can't Dance", "Invisible Touch", "Follow You, Follow Me", and "Turn It On Again" at the Music Managers Forum, in honour of their manager Tony Smith. Gabriel attended but did not perform.93 Most of the original members were involved in compiling the two Archive boxed-sets. Acoustic versions of "Afterglow", "No Son of Mine" and "Follow You, Follow Me" were recorded for a documentary film about the band's history at this time. 2006–09: Reunion tour and discography remastersedit Genesis performing on their 2007 Turn It On Again Tour In November 2006, Banks, Rutherford, and Collins announced their reunion for their 2007 Turn It On Again tour. An early idea for the project was to have Gabriel and Hackett join for live performances of The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, but Gabriel was unable to commit. Hackett stated that a person in Genesis vetoed the idea of The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway being performed as a musical and that's where Gabriel lost interest in a Genesis reunion 94 Hackett decided not to participate without Gabriel.95 The Turn It On Again Tour included 48 shows covering Europe and North America from June to October 2007. Thompson and Stuermer reprised their roles on drums and guitars, respectively. During the UK leg, Genesis opened the London concert of Live Earth at Wembley Stadium on 7 July.96 The European leg ended with a free concert at Circus Maximus in Rome that was attended by approximately 500,000 people. The show was filmed for DVD titled When in Rome 2007. Recordings from various locations on the European leg were used for the live album Live over Europe 2007, released in November 2007. Soundboard recordings of each show on the tour were released by The Music.97 On 12 May 2007, Genesis were honoured at the second annual VH1 Rock Honors where Collins, Banks, and Rutherford performed "Turn It On Again", "No Son of Mine", and "Los Endos".98 In 2007, the first two of three box sets were released containing remastered editions of the band's studio albums released from 1970 to 1997 in new stereo and 5.1 surround sound mixes by producer Nick Davis. Each album is presented as a two-disc set containing a CD/Super Audio CD and a DVD with DTS 24bit/96K and Dolby Digital 24bit/48K 5.1 mixes with bonus features including previously unreleased live performances, interviews, and concert programs. Genesis 1976–1982 was released in May 2007, Genesis 1983–1998 in October 2007, and Genesis 1970–1975 in November 2008. Each album was also reissued individually. In 2009, the DVD box set Genesis Live 1973–2007 containing new editions of the first four live albums was released. This was followed by the DVD box set Genesis Movie Box 1981–2007, containing their concert films filmed between 1981 and 1992. 2010–present: Hall of Fame induction, reunion speculations, Genesis Revisited II, and BBC documentaryedit On 15 March 2010, Genesis were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio. Collins, Banks, Rutherford, and Hackett appeared at the ceremony.99 Since 2010, the band have expressed their feelings about a Genesis reunion. Collins said, "I think Genesis are no longer. I don't foresee me doing any more Genesis shows. Not because I don't like it or don't want to. But it doesn't fit in with my life ... I can't physically play the drums. I don't want to sound like a spoiled kid, like I've had my stuff and I don't want to do it any more. But I have done it all my life, and now I'm enjoying another side of life."100 In 2011 he announced that he ended his music career citing family commitments.101 In September 2011, Gabriel said that a reunion is a possibility but hopes remain very slim: "I won't say never ever, but it's in the outside department of the betting shop ... if you stick with the stuff that nourishes you the most then you'll probably be the happiest."102 In May 2012, Banks said "I think we probably won't do it. Phil, particularly, has sort of moved on somewhat. We did do that last tour three or four years ago as a sort of goodbye. That was the idea of it."4 Hackett stated, "It has been discussed and I'm always up for it"103 and said "I would say it's possible, but highly improbable. I've always been open to it. I'm not the guy who says no."104 Gabriel addressed the possibility of a reunion: "It's never been ruled out. I'm trying to picture a time when it would top my priorities list."105 In April 2014, he was asked again about a possible Genesis reunion saying, "I never say never. It really didn't happen last time. I think there's a small chance, but I don't think it's very high."106 In September 2012, Genesis won the Lifetime Achievement Award at the inaugural Progressive Music Awards.49107108 In 2012 Hackett's Genesis Revisited II album was released featuring many Genesis classic tracks, as well as a two year world tour that followed in Genesis Revisited: Live at Hammersmith and Genesis Revisited: Live At the Apollo. Hackett has delivered a Genesis show that features many of the band's classic tracks that Hackett and Gabriel worked on, something the other members failed to deliver for one reason or another. In 2014, Gabriel, Banks, Rutherford, Collins, and Hackett reunited for Genesis: Together and Apart, a BBC documentary about the band history and the various solo albums the members have released. Hackett was critical about the documentary, claiming its bias and completely ignored his solo work as well as his enormous writing contrubution to Genesis. The documentary does not feature Ray Wilson or his time in the group. Inspiration and influencesedit Throughout their career, Genesis has primarily been a vehicle for songwriting, with individual instruments and styles merely serving the song in question. Though the group have been labelled as Progressive Rock and Arena Rock, Rutherford stated "we've never been worried about technique. We're much more concerned with feel." Band biographers Dave Bowler and Bryan Dray believe the emphasis on songs provides the common link between Trespass and We Can't Dance despite their apparent musical differences.109 Genesis has taken influence from a wide range of music, ranging from classical music to mainstream rock and jazz. The group's public school background meant they took equal influence from classical and church music as well as the contemporary rock music of the 1960s.110 Classical music was an influence on Tony Banks, Anthony Phillips and Steve Hackett in particular. Gabriel and Banks were big fans of Simon and Garfunkel. Banks also drew influence from Alan Price of The Animals, whom he regarded as "the first person who made me aware of the organ in a rock context".111 Collins has cited Buddy Rich and the jazz-rockoutfits The Mahavishnu Orchestra and Weather Report. He was heavily influenced by The Beatles, the band he cited as the reason he started making music, The Action ("They were big heroes of mine, especially their drummer, who I copied all the time")112 and the soul music of Motown, Stax Records and Atlantic Records.113 Hackett's formative years were also influenced by The Beatles, and he has cited "I Feel Fine" as one of the records he learned to play guitar from.114 Gabriel's early career with Genesis took influence from Nina Simone and King Crimson.115 Legacyedit As a group that influenced the growth of the progressive rock genre, Genesis has been cited as an influence on a number of bands including Rush,116 Marillion,117 IQ,118 Pendragon,119 Pallas,120 Iron Maiden,121122 Sound of Contact,123 Spock's Beard,124 and Dream Theater.125126 Simple Minds singer Jim Kerr's first concert was on the band's Foxtrot tour, which he described as "just the most terrific gig and in a way my life was never quite the same again."127 They have also been cited as an influence by alternative rock bands Elbow128 and Coheed and Cambria.129 Several Genesis tribute bands, includingReGenesis, The Musical Box and the Italian progressive rock band The Watch routinely perform material from the Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins eras. Collins became the first artist to cover a Genesis song in a studio release, "Behind the Lines"', which he included on Face Value one year after its original release.130 Other former members previously and subsequently performed the band's material live during their solo shows—Gabriel played "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" and "Back in NYC", while Hackett has performed "In That Quiet Earth", "Los Endos", "Horizons",63 "Firth of Fifth" and "Blood on the Rooftops", among others. Hackett has performed "I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)" on his own solo tours, and on a 1986 tour with his short lived supergroupGTR. Rutherford has performed "I Can't Dance" during his tours with the Mechanics. Collins also later formed The Phil Collins Big Band, which played jazz arrangements of Genesis songs, which were "That's All", "Invisible Touch", "Hold on My Heart" and "Los Endos" (renamed "The Los Endos Suite"), during its 1998 world tour. Ray Wilson has covered the most Genesis songs during his solo concerts. His two solo live albums, Live and Life and Acoustic, feature the Genesis songs "The Carpet Crawlers", "Follow You Follow Me", "I Can't Dance", "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway", "No Son of Mine", "Shipwrecked", and "Mama". He has interpreted two songs from the solo careers of his two predecessors – "In the Air Tonight" (Collins) and "Biko" (Gabriel). Jeff Buckley reworked "Back in NYC" for the posthumously released 1998 Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk; And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead also covered "Back in NYC" as a B-side in 2005. The Brazilian power metal band Angra covered "Mama" in 2002. The Swedish melodic death metal band In Flames covered "Land of Confusion" on Trigger, as did Disturbed on their 2005 album Ten Thousand Fists. Disco-pop band Alcazar, also from Sweden, has covered parts of "Land of Confusion" on their song "This is the World We Live in". Dream Theater covered "Turn It On Again" as part of their song "The Big Medley". In 2007, Simon Collins recorded his own version of "Keep It Dark" with the assistance of sound designer and future bandmate Dave Kerzner as a tribute to the 40th anniversary of his father's band. Collins and Kerzner met at rehearsals for Genesis's 2007 Turn It On Again tour. The duo would later form their own progressive rock band, Sound of Contact, inspired by Collins' experiences on tour with Genesis in his youth as well as Kerzner's appreciation for the band. Collins and Kerzner also provided vocals and keyboards, respectively, on Steve Hackett's 2012 album, Genesis Revisited II.131 Inducting the band into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010, Trey Anastasio of Phish acclaimed Genesis as "rebellious, restless and constantly striving for something more … Every musical rule and boundary was questioned and broken … It's impossible to overstate what impact this band and musical philosophy had on me as a young musician. I'm forever in their debt."132 Beyond purely musical ventures, the theatrical style of Genesis's 1970s concerts with Gabriel and advanced lighting of their 1980s shows have provided inspiration for Cirque du Soleil's productions: the 2004 anniversary show Midnight Sun and the arena-based touring show Delirium trace their musical and multimedia elements back to these concerts. According to Victor Pilon, co-creator and co-director of both shows, "We're not inventing anything. Genesis did it years ago. We're just using new technology."133 Album cover artedit The band's album covers often incorporate complex and intricate art intended to reflect the themes explored in the music. The initial release of the band's first album, From Genesis to Revelation, used a plain black sleeve with the album title written in a golden gothic typeface. The three subsequent album covers were developed by the popular Charisma Records graphic artist Paul Whitehead. The Foxtrot sleeve depicts a feminine figure in a red dress with the head of a fox. Whitehead has said in an interview that Jimi Hendrix's "Foxy Lady" was an inspiration for the character.134 The cover art for Selling England by the Pound was painted by Betty Swanwick. Peter Gabriel saw the original drawing, called The Dream, at an exhibition and asked Swanwick to modify it for use as the album cover. Most notably, Swanwick added a lawnmower to the image to tie the painting to the lyrics of "I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)".135 After Whitehead moved to Los Angeles, Genesis signed with the art collective Hipgnosis, whose artists had created high profile album covers for Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon and Led Zeppelin's Houses of the Holy. Hipgnosis's first Genesis album cover was for The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, which featured a male model, credited simply as "Omar", portraying the album's protagonist "Rael". Peter Gabriel has said in an interview for the 2008 box-set release of The Lamb that he was not happy about the choice of model as he had vividly imagined Rael as being Puerto Rican. Through the rest of the 1970s, various Hipgnosis artists designed Genesis' studio album covers. The Trick of the Tail cover depicts the characters from the album songs, including the robber from "Robbery, Assault and Battery", the beast from the title track, and a metaphoric image of old age reminiscing on youth from the song "Ripples..." and a squonk (from the song of the same name) is also featured on the rear of the cover. Beginning with Duke, Genesis albums have featured artwork designed by Bill Smith Studios. The band's highest-selling album Invisible Touch, features the artwork of Assorted Images, which had previously designed sleeves for Simple Minds, Duran Duran and Culture Club. The We Can't Dance cover art features the work of Felicity Roma Bowers, and is reminiscent of Wind & Wuthering, now presented in hazywatercolour. The Calling All Stations and the compilation Turn It On Again: The Hits sleeves were designed by Wherefore Art?. Criticismedit Early incarnations of Genesis were often targets for criticism during the 1970s. An article in Q Magazine describes a 1977 Ray Lowry cartoon, which depicted an arena of "either asleep, moribund, or comatose" fans watching a live Genesis performance, with the band's name emblazoned on a banner above the stage reading "GENESNOOZE".136 More specifically, some in Britain – especially supporters of the punk movement – regarded Genesis in particular, but also the progressive rock genre more generally, as overtly middle class (paying particular attention to Gabriel, Banks and Rutherford's private education), and claimed that rock music was being taken away from the working class, whom they regarded as its core audience. Peter Gabriel claimed that their audience was a "mixture of social classes" and that such a suggestion was a fabrication of the critics.137 In 2013, Gabriel told Mojo: "To this day, we’ve never outgrown the snotty rich-kid thing. It used to piss me off seeing all these 'people's hero' musicians – like Joe Strummer – who’d come from a similar background to mine, but were keeping it quiet. In Genesis we were always very straight about where we came from, and we were middle-class, not aristocratic."138 Gabriel's theatrics were unpalatable to some of the mainstream rock audience, resulting in a cult following rather than mainstream.139 This was exemplified during live performances of Gabriel's last Genesis album,The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, during which he appeared on stage as various characters in the album's lyrics. The elaborate storyline for The Lamb proved difficult to understand and accept, and caused a bit of friction within the band.66 Collins later recalled that Gabriel would "be in a Slipperman costume trying to get a mic anywhere near his throat, and be out of breath—all twisted up. Towards the end I felt the singing wasn't really being heard; the songs weren't really being heard".140 BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel championed the band in their early years and they performed three sessions for him between 1970 and 1972, but "he grew disillusioned with their later excesses". Peel was quoted: "I used to go and see Genesis and after about three minutes I'd think, oh, I wish this would stop!"141 Conversely, the band's transition from lengthy, complex songs to more compact, simplistic, radio-friendly material was not welcomed by critics; Rolling Stones review of ''...And Then There Were Three... read: "...this contemptible opus is but the palest shadow of the group's earlier accomplishments."142 "I don't feel we've bastardised the way we were", Collins remarked in an interview with Music Express: "on a generous day I'll blame me for the change, but I just think it is us growing up, listening to different things".143 In a 1982 interview in Sounds, Collins talked about the band's reputation in the music press and said that he only knew of one music journalist, Hugh Fielder, who openly liked Genesis.144 In 1987, Los Angeles Times critic Robert Hilburn stated: "There's something flabbergastingly insignificant about Genesis. Its themes touch on the usual subjects – various desires and disappointments in love and life – but there is scant discovery. That isn't music that documents our times or questions our assumptions, the way involving art does. Rather than bite, probe or surprise, Genesis' music just lulls. No wonder it fits so perfectly into beer commercials." Hilburn expressed more admiration for the earlier version of the band, describing it as "a promising, if often overly ambitious progressive-rock entry, highlighted by expert musicianship and the showmanship/imagination of lead singer Peter Gabriel."145 Reviewing Genesis 1976–1982 in Q'', Andy Fyfe wrote: "... in spite of 150 [''sic] million album sales the bottom line is that little of the band’s output has aged well ... There are moments of impressive songwriting, such as the tender "Many Too Many", the darkly tragic "Duchess" and epic "One for the Vine", but little of Genesis's music transcends in the way real classics do, and that is why they will remain perennial whipping boys for decades to come."146 Music critic J. D. Considine wrote of the band: Personneledit Main article: List of Genesis band members Discographyedit Main article: Genesis discography * From Genesis to Revelation (1969) * Trespass (1970) * Nursery Cryme (1971) * Foxtrot (1972) * Selling England by the Pound (1973) * The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway (1974) * A Trick of the Tail (1976) * Wind & Wuthering (1976) * ...And Then There Were Three... (1978) * Duke (1980) * Abacab (1981) * Genesis (1983) * Invisible Touch (1986) * We Can't Dance (1991) * Calling All Stations (1997) Category:Bands